University of Birmingham spin-out HyProMag produces first recycled rare earth magnets vital for energy transition

By Peter Davison

13 December 2023

Share

The Business Magazine article image for: University of Birmingham spin-out HyProMag produces first recycled rare earth magnets vital for energy transition

Tyseley Energy Park

Canadian mineral exploration and development company Mkango Resources has announced the first production of recycled rare earth magnets in the United Kingdom on commercial scale magnet manufacturing equipment in over 20 years - hailing it "a major milestone in securing critical raw materials for the energy transition".

The rare earth magnets are being developed by the University of Birmingham and spin-out HyProMag - which is owned by Maginito - at the at the Tyseley Energy Park.

The magnets represent a new domestic source to catalyse electric vehicle, wind turbine and other clean technology industries.

£20 million awarded to National Centre for the Decarbonisation of Heat

Commercial production at Tyseley is targeted for mid-2024.

Will Dawes, Chief Executive of Mkango said: “This is a major milestone for the company, HyProMag and for the UK, creating a strong platform to advance to commercial production and for the scale-up and roll-out of HPMS technology into Germany, United States and other jurisdictions.

"HyProMag’s recycling technology has major competitive advantages versus other recycling technologies, and is a key enabler for the cost effective and energy efficient separation and recycling of rare earth magnets, avoiding the need for dismantling, and enabling the production of magnets with a significantly reduced carbon footprint.”

Nick Mann, Operations General Manager of HyProMag said: “Beginning production on commercial scale equipment is very exciting for all of us at HyProMag.

We are receiving strong market interest to begin delivering recycled magnets to customers at scale – being able to start that over the coming months will be extremely positive.

"We also look forward to implementing the lessons learned as we see equipment arriving in Germany next year and in the USA soon afterwards.”

Professor Allan Walton, Head of the Magnetic Materials Group, University of Birmingham, and founding Director of HyProMag said: “A huge amount of work has been carried out over the last year on the existing pilot plant at the University of Birmingham to produce a spectrum of NdFeB magnets with a range of magnetic grades.

Visit Hampshire Biz News for bright, upbeat and positive business news from the county

"This has allowed us to test recycled magnets in a range of products for the first time with extremely encouraging results.

"The installation of the new equipment at Tyseley Energy Park has allowed us to prove that these properties can be achieved on a commercial scale for the first time on automated equipment.

"This is a massive step forward and re-introduces commercial sintered magnet manufacturing back into the UK for the first time in over 20 years”.

By Peter Davison

Peter Davison is deputy editor of The Business Magazine. He has spent his life in journalism – doing work experience in newsrooms in and around Bristol while still at school, and landing his first job on a local newspaper aged 19. By 28 he was the youngest newspaper editor in the country.

An early advocate of online news, he spent the first years of the 2000s telling his bosses that the internet posed both the biggest opportunity and greatest threat to the newspaper industry and the art of journalism. He was right on both counts.

Since 2006 he has enjoyed a career as a freelance journalist. He lives in rural Wiltshire with one wife, two children, and three cats.